Penguin Bib, crochet pattern by Darleen Hopkins

4th of July, Penguins and Crochet

Posted on June 28, 2014 by CrochetByDarleenHopkins

What do the 4th of July, Penguins and Crochet have in common?

Macaroni Penguins have a beautiful yellow crest that covers the top of their heads. English explorers named Macaroni Penguins after the fashionable young men of the 18th century called ‘macaronis‘.

Make me a Macaroni Penguin!

The song, “Yankee Doodle”, which references the macaroni style, was a popular song during the American Revolutionary War. The American holiday, Independence Day or 4th of July, is a celebration of the United States declaring its independence from Great Britain. So, what does this have to do with crochet? Nothing really. I just thought it was a fun fact and wanted to share. Anyone want to turn this cutie into a Macaroni Penguin? I’d love to see it!

“Stuck a feather in his cap and called it macaroni.”
– Yankee Doodle

Independence Day is less than a week away. Have a fun and safe 4th!

Dog Themed Charity Chemo Hat by Darleen Hopkins

Stash Bust Update, June 2014 Busting out the Dogs

Posted on June 18, 2014 by CrochetByDarleenHopkins

Who Let the Dogs Out?

I’m still working on making a hat or two for the Kanine Kap Kampaign. I just finished my second, Woof! Woof! The pattern was improvised as I went along and used EXACTLY a full skein of Hushabye Solid by Baby Bee. This is a really soft 50/50 cotton/acrylic blend in aran weight. I’m really pleased with how the slouchy style turned out and it will likely end up as a pattern in the future but most likely minus the Woof Woof. The hat weighs in at 3.5 oz.

Total hats made in the 2014 challenge to date: 11

Total weight of the hats made in the 2014 challenge to date: 2 pounds 1/4 ounces

I’m still behind in my challenge but I’ll keep on stitching! : )

Stash Bust Update, May 2014

Posted on June 2, 2014 by CrochetByDarleenHopkins

Stashing Busting for Halos of Hope

Last week I mentioned how lucky I was to receive some beautiful samples of Cascade Yarn. (See post here.) I also made a brief mention of Halo of Hope’s latest hat collection campaign, the Kanine Kap Kampaign. I wanted to transform some of the cotton Cascade Yarn into a dog hat for this collection but was stumped. What kind of dog can I make with bright red yarn….hmmm… Seriously, I don’t know where my brain was. It hasn’t been that long since I was teaching my boys how to read…with CLIFFORD THE BIG RED DOG easy readers!!!! Finally my brain fart ended and ding! the light bulb went off. I just love Avalon and it was the perfect yarn and the perfect red for this hat. I didn’t use a pattern. I kind of made up the ears and nose as I went along and had to work them a couple of times as I had to limit the hat to just the one skein of yarn. I ended up with about 8 inches of yarn to spare. The nose and whites of the eyes are scrap yarn and he has shiny black button eyes. This hat weighs in at 3 3/4 ounces.

Total hats made in the 2014 challenge to date: 10

Total weight of the hats made in the 2014 challenge to date: 1 pound 12 3/4 ounces

Stitches South, Always a Pleasure

Posted on May 30, 2014 by CrochetByDarleenHopkins

Stitches South and Halos of Hope

A few weeks ago I volunteered to help Pam with Halos of Hope and the booth at Stitches South (Stitches) in Atlanta. For those not familiar with a Stitches event, it is an event put on by Knitting Universe; basically a yarnie convention. There are classes for knitters and crocheters, a fashion show and a market where you can buy yarn (surprise!) but lots of other vendors are there too; local yarn shops will get booths, manufacturers of various knit and/or crochet related gadgets, local guilds, yarn companies and many more. Halos of Hope had a booth to promote the charity, sell fundraising patterns and collect hats. Last year Pam put out a call to help man the booth so she could take a break or two and I eagerly offered. When she asked again this year, I was the first to raise my hand.

This is me donating hats I made.

I absolutely love experiencing the stories of those who stop by. Although many are happy, some are sad. Those who told stories of loved ones who lost the battle to cancer made my heart weep. But being able to talk of their loved one, if only to a stranger and for a few minutes, helps them heal and allows their memory to live on. One woman came by and told how her husband was recently diagnosed. Pam instantly pulled out the big bin of donated hats and found some manly ones for him.

I love the stories of the survivors who stop by and the nurses who work in centers where the patients receive donated hats. And I love when others come by with hats they made, whatever their motivation to knit, crochet or sew for Halos of Hope may be, they come with lovingly handmade hats to bring hope to others who need it most.

This year the Halos booth was located across from the Cascade Yarn booth. I recently had the pleasure to work with Cascade Yarn’s Avalon when I designed the Picture Perfect Baby Blanket or Throw. It is a lovely super-soft cotton yarn. Pam introduced me Shannon Dunbabin with Cascade Yarn-a very nice woman who could knit without looking at her work-an accomplishment I hope to achieve one day with my crocheting.

The event took place just south of Atlanta which is about an hour and a half drive from where I live. So I made a day of it and spent a little bit of time enjoying the market before and after my shift was done. After I strolled around the market and returned to the booth to collect my things, I found a bag full of yarn samples Shannon had given Pam to share with me! How sweet! and when I walked over to thank her, she gave me another beautiful hank of yarn! WOW!

I’ve already started working with the red Avalon yarn. Can you guess what I’m making? I’ll give you a hint-it has to do with Halos of Hope’s current campaign,the Kanine Kap Kampaign and has something to do with a dog who is red (obviously) and big. : )

Stash Bust Update, March 2014 – Stash Busting for Halos of Hope

Posted on April 13, 2014 by CrochetByDarleenHopkins

Still On Safari with Halos of Hope and Stitches South

Going along with the On Safari theme, I made three more hats in March for Halos of Hope. Two are flamingos, a variation of my Chirp! Chirp! Tweet! Tweet! pattern. The third is another wacky variation of the Zombie Monkey pattern turned into a Lion. After making two of these lion creatures, I still have some Pomp-A-Doodle left. I guess a third lion will appear later in the year. I had the privilege of dropping these hats and others off at Stitches South yesterday. It was a great day-check for a blog post about it later this week. The 3 hats weigh in at almost 8 ounces.

Total hats made in 2014 challenge to date: 9

Total weight of the hats made in the 2014 challenge to date: 1 pound 9 ounces

Stash Bust Update, March 2014, on Safari with Halos of Hope and Stitches South

Posted on March 20, 2014 by CrochetByDarleenHopkins

I’m always so excited to hear when Halos of Hope has a new collection campaign. Mainly because they are awesome and do awesome work but also because it gives me some direction on what type of hat to make. Sometimes I’ll have a ball of yarn sitting in my basket begging for me to make a hat with it but I’ll have no idea what design or pattern to use. Then, along comes Halos of Hope with a new themed collection and BINGO, the light bulb comes on (and I don’t even need my Thinking Cap!) and I know exactly what to do with that yarn. That is what happened with both some brown yarn and this crazy Pomp-A-Doodle yarn I had purchased.

Halos of Hope’s latest themed collection is ‘On Safari’ for Atlanta area children’s hospitals. Basically, they are requesting any type of themed hat that can be found on safari or at the zoo. They are collecting the hats and plan to distribute them while in town for Stitches South in April. If you remember, last year they went ‘Under the Sea’. So with this in mind, I peered into my yarn bin and that super soft, dark brown yarn I had no idea what to do with yelled out at me-MONKEY! but not just any monkey, ZOMBIE MONKEY!! He’s a cute little guy with mismatched zombie button eyes. I hope he brings a smile to a brave young man (or lady).

The second ball of yarn to call to me was this crazy Pomp-A-Doodle yarn. I thought it would make a pretty good lion. I had to get a little creative with this one. Click on the photo to bring you to the project notes-you won’t believe what pattern I used!

My last hat to share was actually started in …2012… and I finished it up in February during the Winter Olympics (Ravellenic Games on Ravelry). This is another hat where I got creative with the pattern as I used the Candy Corn Stocking Cap for this one. I’m real please with it and it too will be donated to Halos of Hope when they are in town next month. The three hats come in at 9 ounces.

Total hats made in 2014 challenge to date: 6

Total weight of the hats made in the 2014 challenge to date: 1 pound 1.25 ounces

Save with Daylight Savings

Posted on March 9, 2014 by CrochetByDarleenHopkins

Flash Sale on all Crochet by Darleen Hopkins Patterns on Ravelry

Use coupon code “Savings25” for 25% off your entire purchase, today only! March 9, 2014 until midnight Eastern Standard Time. Over 30 patterns on sale!
CLICK: Crochet by Darleen Hopkins on Ravelry

Men in Crocheted Pants

Posted on March 2, 2014 by CrochetByDarleenHopkins

You know you are a real man when…

I seem to spend as much or maybe even more time looking at crochet online than actually crocheting. It’s a sickness I can’t get control of; I’m hopelessly addicted to all things crochet. Because I spend a lot of time online, I find some unique stuff. We all know the saying, “beauty is in the eye of the beholder”. This saying applies to crochet too. There are some who would never touch acrylic yarn, it is lace-weight wool only for them. There are some who would never crochet a silly hat, it’s shawls and baby blankets only for them. And of course, there are those who would never crochet, it’s knit only for them, but that’s another post… Anyway, there are some who would never crochet the man in their life a pair of pants and there are men who would never wear a pair of crocheted pants. But the opposite was true for these fellows-or maybe they made the pants themselves, I don’t know. Either way, congratulations to these men who proudly wear the crocheted pants in their family!

Last, one for the ladies so you don’t feel left out.

https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/sources/christmas-tree-pillows

2014 Stash Bust Challenge for Hope

Posted on February 15, 2014 by CrochetByDarleenHopkins

Update, February 2014 Stash Bust Challenge

Stash busting for Halos of Hope is in full swing. It’s mid-February and I have two hats to share! I’m so proud of myself for getting this month’s goal done early. I *hope* to complete one or two more this month to catch up for last month.

The first, The Frostberry Hat by Sarah Jane Designs, is a hat I started back in November, but had to put it down for a couple of months while I worked on other projects. I made a couple unintentional adjustments to the pattern. I really shouldn’t crochet while watching TV as I got my row counts off. The hat still looks great even with the adjustments. I love this pattern and plan to make another, as the pattern is written.

The second, The Happy Puppy Hat, was made for a co-worker’s daughter, Sarah, an adorable 2-year old, who is currently going through chemo treatments. The little girl recently received a new puppy so I thought this Happy Puppy hat would put a smile on her little face.

The weight of the two hats came to 6.5 ounces

Total hats made in 2014 challenge to date: 3

Total weight of the hats made in the 2014 challenge to date: 8.25 ounces

Working in the back horizontal bar, crochet

Posted on February 5, 2014 by CrochetByDarleenHopkins

You want me to put my hook where????

Have you ever had a pattern tell you to hdc-whb or whb-hdc? Huh? Half double crochet worked in the horizontal bar (also called ‘back bar’) is a pretty easy stitch and creates beautiful ribbing. After watching the video, take some time to work a few rows of hdc-whb and you’ll feel like an expert crocheter!

Crochet By Darleen Hopkins

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